Iraq wins Asian Cup in dramatic fashion

Iraq won their first Asian Cup after they defeated Saudi Arabia in the finals. As everyone thought, this was going to be a very intense match up as it was between two Arabic countries. Saudi Arabia were considered the big favorites as many thought that Iraq had been lucky to get this far. But, Iraq started the game very well and kept on putting the pressure on the Saudis. Iraq played with a lot of passion as they wouldn't stopped attacking and you could feel they wanted it more than the Saudis. Iraq had many opportunities in the first half as Karrar Jassim Mohammed came very close to scoring after he had dribbled past three Saudi defenders, but the Saudi Keeper was able to punch the ball away. Saudi Arabia was finally able to get a goal scoring chance and that came after their captain, Yasser Al Qahtani dribbled past a player brilliantly but his shot was deflected after Jasim threw his body in the way.

It seemed like that Saudi Arabia was going to wake up in the second half and dominate the game, but this was not the case as Iraq continued on dominating the game. They were finally able to open the scoring sheet after Hawar Mulla Mohammed crossed the ball to the far post and Younis Mahmoud was able to put the ball into the net after Al Mosailem misread the pass and was not able to clear the ball. This goal was well deserved as they had many clear chances to score, but were denied by Al Mosailem. Younis Mahmoud had another chance to put the game away after one of the substitutes, with the fresh legs had blown past the Saudi defenders, but Younis was not able to capitalize. But at the end, Iraq defended very well and cleared all the balls near their goal. When the referee blew the whistle, the Iraqi players went wild as they had won the Asian Cup.

This was a huge victory for Iraq, as they are in a war right now, and this will allow the people of Iraq to have a day of joy. Nobody ever thought that Iraq would win the cup, but they played inspiring soccer the whole tournament as they beat Australia, Korea, and Saudi Arabia. Many of their players have also received deals from European teams after their impressing play. Iraq's most important player in this cup was Nashat Akram, as he played well every game, who would distribute the ball around the whole field. It has been said that Nashat Akram has received an offer from Sunderland. This win is a big win around the whole world, as Iraq is a country in huge trouble, and for their soccer team to come and win the Asian Cup, just says about the character of their players.